ANAHEIM – An infuriating, us-against-the-refs loss Sunday nearly was even worse for the exasperated Ducks.

They were this close, thisclose — we’re talking barely the width of a skate blade — from being called for too many coaches on the ice.

See, one coach skidding around in Steve Maddens is considered too many by the NHL, which, in these situations, has the sense of humor of the Gestapo. Bruce Boudreau was a short stride and a snap decision away from becoming a highlight for all-time.

“I almost ran on the ice without thinking,” he admitted Tuesday. “Well, I mean, it was a pretty important goal.”

Boudreau was lit like a firecracker — only with a shorter fuse and a longer bang — when officials waved off Matt Beleskey’s apparent tying goal midway through the third period of an eventual 3-2 loss to Boston.

They ruled that Andrew Cogliano, who was in the crease, obstructed the Bruins’ Marty Turco. (Replays suggested otherwise.)

Few people inside Honda Center agreed. No one agreed less or with more animation than Boudreau, who hurriedly stepped over the bench and flung open the door and, for the slightest of seconds, appeared on his way to confronting referee Rob Martell out near center ice.

If you can imagine an enraged Tommy Lasorda charging across a frozen pond, you can guess why this would have been a YouTube sensation.

All of this happened, however, only after Boudreau’s first choice of response failed. He attempted to grab a water bottle with, presumably, the intention of hurling it in Martell’s direction but couldn’t dislodge the bottle from its holder.

“Yeah, I’ve thrown the water bottles in the American (Hockey) League and looked for sticks (to throw),” Boudreau said. “But, I mean, I can’t picture myself doing that here.”

There was no denying Boudreau left it all out there for his team Sunday, and by all, we’re including his vocal capacity. When he walked into the locker room immediately after the game, he told his players in a strained, barely audible voice: “I can’t even talk. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

The coach’s throat, however, had recovered enough by the time he met with reporters for Boudreau to announce he felt like punching Martell.

“He’s pretty calm off the ice and stuff,” defenseman Luca Sbisa said of his boss. “But, once the game starts, you just feel how passionate he is about hockey. We love that about him. It just shows how much he cares about the team.”

Since the invention of ice, every hockey club has disagreed with the referees at some point. And the Ducks, particularly, are recognized as a group not shy about vocalizing its disagreements.

Teemu Selanne is the “Finnish Flash” when the game is going on, but, after the whistle blows, he’s often the “Fuming Flash.”

“If there’s any dispute on the ice, if he’s on the ice or not, he’s getting on the ice,” forward Jason Blake said, laughing. “For me, it’s comedy. I’ve never seen anything like it before and I’ve played 14 seasons.”

Selanne’s teammates like to call him “T,” as in Teemu. If he played basketball, Selanne might be known as “T,” too, as in technical. Early this year, the NHL warned Selanne about his on-ice complaining.

In the game against the Bruins, he evidently was on edge even when he wasn’t standing on his skates.

“Twice, not even the (disallowed) goal, he was almost leaping over the boards,” Blake said, smiling this time. “I think we had two penalties and, before they were done blowing the whistle, he was over the bench yelling. It’s funny. I love it. That’s who ‘T’ is.

“That says a lot about him. He’s passionate out there. He doesn’t like to be wrong very often. And if he knows he’s wrong, he’s still right.”

Despite his generally animated state, Boudreau said he never has been fined by the NHL for comments about referees. “Not yet,” he said. “But if you keep asking these questions …”

Former Ducks coach Randy Carlyle, who once was caught by cameras flipping off the officials, was disciplined a few seasons ago for suggesting the referees were intimidated by the home crowd in Detroit.

The NHL takes a rather unfavorable view toward remarks that question the integrity of the game. Rangers coach John Tortorella was fined $30,000 in January after hinting that the league and NBC had conspired in an attempt to send a game into overtime.

“Every now and again I lose it, as most coaches would, I think,” Boudreau said. “You only lose it for a second, though, and then it’s like OK, you’re back.”

He lost it for good long, entertaining second Sunday. But then Bruce Boudreau found his senses again, and it was only the Ducks’ playoff hopes — and not their head coach — slip sliding away.

Jeff Miller has been a sports columnist since 1998, having previously written for the Palm Beach Post, South Florida Sun-Sentinel and Miami Herald. He began at the Register in 1995 as beat writer for the Angels.

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